FERRIS' RACHEL FOLCIK HONORED AS ALL-AMERICA FINALIST

Junior Forward Among NCAA-II Kodak/WBCA All-America Candidates

Junior forward/center Rachel Folcik (Powers/Carney-Nadeau) of the 2006-07 Ferris State women's basketball team is among 35 finalists for the 2007 NCAA Division II Kodak/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) All-America Team in an announcement made by the WBCA.

Ferris' Rachel Folcik, shown her in Monday's regional final versus Drury, has been honored as a NCAA Division II Kodak/WBCA All-America Finalist

Folcik joins Gannon's Christina Jackson, Amber Shelton of Southern Illinois-Edwardsville along with Lewis' (Ill.) Mary Moskal and Darcee Schmidt as first-team all-region representatives from region four. Head coaches from each of the WBCA's eight geographical regions chose the all-region honorees. Once selected, the all-region team members became finalists for Kodak/WBCA All-America Team consideration.

The 10-member NCAA Division II Kodak/WBCA All-America Women's Basketball Team will be announced at the Division II Banquet of Champions slated for March 20 in Kearney, Neb. Founded in 1981, the WBCA promotes women's basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport and to foster and promote the development of the game as an amateur sport for women and girls.

Last week (March 7), Folcik was named to the five-member Daktronics All-Great Lakes Region First Team as selected by the region's sports information directors. With the Daktronics selection, Folcik became only the sixth player in FSU women's history to attain all-region laurels. Former Bulldog player Tianna Kirkland was a first-team all-region pick in 2000-01 and Debbie Killips claimed second-team honors in 2001-02. Lucy DeMartin twice attained first-team accolades in 2002-03 and 2003-04 while Bridget Horwitz was a second-team selection in 2002-03. Senior guard Erin Miller (Niles), who concluded her collegiate eligibility this campaign, received first-team recognition in 2003-04 before picking up second-team honors last season (2005-06).

The 6-1 Folcik previously earned All-GLIAC North Division First Team honors along with GLIAC North Division All-Defensive Team accolades for her performance this campaign. She also attained the league's divisional Player of the Week Award honor six times this year, all of which came in the final nine weeks of the season. Folcik received the league's weekly honor more than any other male or female conference player this campaign.

Folcik became only the 14th player in school history to notch her 1,000th career point in FSU's 70-65 league home win over Northern Michigan (Feb. 10) as she tallied 34 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocked shots in the contest. Her seven blocked shots in the game was one shy of tying the school's single-game record while her 16 made field goals in the contest tied the school record. Additionally, Folcik's 241 made field goals and 602 total points this season both represented school single-season marks while her 261 rebounds was the second-highest seasonal figure in FSU history.

Folcik was featured in the Feb. 19th Sports Illustrated magazine issue in the popular "Faces In The Crowd" section of the weekly magazine. Folcik also was recently named to the 2006-07 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV Women's Basketball College Division Second Team for her performance both on the floor and in the classroom.

Folcik, who averaged a team-best 18.8 points per game, scored in double-figures 27 times this year and notched 13 double-double (points & rebounds) performances. She was honored as Ferris State University’s female Bulldog of the Month award winner for December, January and February based on her play those three months. A team captain, Folcik also averaged a squad-best 8.2 rebounds per game this campaign. She finished the year listed second overall in scoring and fifth in rebounds among the GLIAC's overall leaders while ranking second in both field goal (.555) and free throw (.860) percentage for all games played.

Last season (2005-06), Folcik was a GLIAC All-Academic Team selection. She finished second among the team's performers in rebounding (6.1 rpg) and third in scoring (12.8 ppg) along with registering 19 double-figure scoring games. Folcik also was named to the Aquinas College Classic All-Tournament Team a year ago. Earlier this year, Folcik was chosen as an all-tourney selection as Ferris posted a 2-0 mark in the season-opening Clarion (Pa.) Classic (Nov. 17-18).

The Ferris State women's basketball squad posted a school-record 23 wins (23-9) this campaign while advancing to the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Championship Game for the first time in school history. The Bulldogs, who suffered a 79-69 loss to Drury (Mo.) in the regional final this past Monday (March 12) in Romeoville, Ill., reached the NCAA-II Sweet Sixteen for the first time and recorded back-to-back wins in their first two national tournament games. Prior to this past weekend, Ferris had never won a game in the NCAA Tournament.

Folcik was chosen as a NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional All-Tournament Team selection for her efforts in guiding the Bulldogs to a regional runner-up finish.